Sign in or register
for additional privileges

Birth of An Industry: Blackface Minstrelsy and the Rise of American Animation

Nicholas Sammond, Author
Performance, page 18 of 25
Previous page on path     Next page on path

 

You appear to be using an older verion of Internet Explorer. For the best experience please upgrade your IE version or switch to a another web browser.

Performance, Page 72

The term "pickaninny" is a derogatory term for poor African American children, who were (and are) often stereotyped as immature, rebellious, and immune to pain. According to Felix the Cat creator Otto Messmer, Pat Sullivan, the producer of Felix, had first created a character, Sammy Jonsin, who was based on the stereotype of the pickaninny. That character eventually became Felix.

The pickanniny was a common figure in popular culture during the early twentieth century. A Blatz gum ad from a 1928 issue of the movie fan magazine Photoplay blithely asks why a pickaninny loves watermelon, implying that his uncontrollable appetites will lead him to steal that same fruit.

That voraciousness is on display when Felix dreams of an ideal future in which he can eat endlessly in Futuritzy (1928), simultaneously demonstrating the economy of line and of stereotype through which Sullivan Studios created its animated worlds.

Comment on this page
  • Local Discussion
    •
  • Popout
    •
 

Discussion of "Performance, Page 72"

Add your voice to this discussion.

Checking your signed in status ...

Previous page on path Performance, page 18 of 25 Next page on path
Sammy Johnsin    Cartoons    Image    Moving Image    Sound    Black and White    Pat Sullivan    Felix the Cat

Related:  Labor, Page 88,  Conclusion, Page 296,  Labor, Page 131,  Labor, Page 129,  Space, Page 165,  Labor, Page 109,  Race, Page 258,  Conclusion, Page 278,  Space, Page 187,  Performance, Page 50,  Race, Page 224,  Introduction, Page 9,  Race, Page 253,  Introduction, Page 12,  Space, Page 150,  Space, Page 175,  Introduction, Page 23,  Conclusion, Page 292,  Performance, Page 70,  Conclusion, Page 284,  Introduction, Page 2,  Labor, Page 112,  Space, Page 162,  Labor, Page 122,  Space, Page 143,  Race, Page 229,  Introduction, Page 14,  Conclusion, Page 291,  Conclusion, Page 300,  Space, Page 183,  Race, Page 221,  Race, Page 231,  Performance, Page 77,  Labor, Page 98,  Conclusion, Page 303,  Race, Page 239,  Race, Page 232,  Performance, Page 34,  Labor, Page 113,  Space, Page 138,  Space, Page 188,  Performance, Page 56,  Labor, Page 133,  Space, Page 177,  Introduction, Page 21,  Conclusion, Page 289,  Labor, Page 128,  Conclusion, Page 268,  Space, Page 191,  Race, Page 252,  Performance, Page 54,  Space, Page 148,  Space, Page 192,  Space, Page 190,  Labor, Page 126,  Introduction, Page 6,  Performance, Page 42,  Race, Page 247,  Race, Page 206,  Space, Page 194,  Conclusion, Page 274,  Space, Page 171,  Conclusion, Page 272,  Performance, Page 84,  Space, Page 170,  Race, Page 220,  Performance, Page 45,  Labor, Page 102,  Labor, Page 101,  Space, Page 182,  Space, Page 163,  Performance, Page 82,  Performance, Page 44,  Race, Page 235,  Introduction, Page 29,  Labor, Page 119,  Race, Page 225,  Introduction, Page 4,  Conclusion, Page 298,  Labor, Page 132,  Performance, Page 47,  Space, Page 137,  Performance, Page 43,  Conclusion, Page 286,  Space, Page 141,  Race, Page 248,  Space, Page 172,  Space, Page 152,  Race, Page 230,  Race, Page 254,  Labor, Page 123,  Space, Page 193,  Performance, Page 78,  Performance, Page 74,  Race, Page 204,  Space, Page 155,  Space, Page 178,  Race, Page 219,  Performance, Page 46,  Introduction, Page 26,  Space, Page 156,  Introduction, Page 20,  Performance, Page 62,  Introduction, Page 18,  Introduction, Page 1,  Space, Page 181,  Conclusion, Page 304,  Conclusion, Page 290,  Race, Page 261,  Conclusion, Page 302,  Performance, Page 35,  Race, Page 251,  Conclusion, Page 273,  Labor, Page 96,  Space, Page 159,  Space, Page 184,  Labor, Page 110,  Space, Page 197,  Labor, Page 93,  Space, Page 146,  Performance, Page 52,  Race, Page 245,  Performance, Page 80,  Race, Page 257,  Performance, Page 40,  introduction-page-22,  Performance, Page 60,  Performance, Page 41,  Performance, Page 67,  Race, Page 213,  Space, Page 189,  Space, Page 169,  Conclusion, Page 275,  Introduction, Page 30